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Elf, Interrupted: Book One: Glorfindel Redux  by Fiondil 7 Review(s)
LarnerReviewed Chapter: 125 on 2/16/2008
I am very proud of Haldir here. A most worthy one to follow Finrod. And the declarations of Ingwe and his queen are most illuminating.

Author Reply: Yes, Haldir is very worthy to follow Finrod. We all have reason to be proud of him.

NarielReviewed Chapter: 125 on 10/5/2007
Fiondil, I notice that you haven't updated in two weeks almost. Are you even still working on this? I hope you do.

Author Reply: Rest assured that I am indeed working on this story. Juggling three WIPs at the same time, however, takes it's toll and I'm not writing as often as I have in the past. Plus we are in the middle of the Mid-Autumn holiday period in China and so I'm on vacation (sort of). I expect to update sometime over the weekend. thanks for your concern.

eilujReviewed Chapter: 125 on 9/30/2007
The rumors that had run through the city the day before died down only to be replaced by new rumors concerning the Reborn and their proclivity towards violence -- Yes. Obviously there needs to be some incident that creates a positive impression. Finrod and Haldir’s match was well-received, but it doesn’t begin to solve the PR problem. Luckily, with Glorfindel and Finrod around, it’s guaranteed something *will* happen. My bet is still on heroics from the Reborn once (more) Bad Guys show up. Or I suppose it could be the Bad Guys we already know.

[Oh dear: now I’m stuck with the mental picture of Námo hiring a PR firm to create a positive image for the Reborn.]

[Now I’m wondering what sort of PR firms there are in Valinor. And who runs them. Supercilious Vanyar? Go-getters from Endórë? Canny Maiar in their off-hours? (And if Maiar, *whose* Maiar?)]

All of them advanced to the next round along with eighteen other competitors -- If the total at the end of the first round is 27, and eight are listed here by name, wouldn’t that be *nineteen* others rather than eighteen? Or am I missing something?

“The fëar of the Reborn exist on a slightly different level of reality than the Once-born and I don’t think we know all the ramifications of that” -- Interesting in view of the description of Glorfindel in LotR.


In my review for the last chapter, I said “or even ellon” because I think this is the first story where I’ve seen that word used to refer to a child. I know you’re using it that way -- and I surely don’t know any reason why you *shouldn’t* -- but when I read it, my mind is still defining “ellon” as an adult male elf. Yes, my brain is weird, or maybe just stubborn.


Author Reply: If there is the equivalent of Madison Avenue in Valinor, I imagine it's headed by Eonwë and the rest of the heralds of the Realms. *grin*

Yes, there is a definite PR problem here but hopefully people like Finrod and Glorfindel will turn the Amanian elves' opinions around, thought it may take some time yet.

The Sindarin word _ellon_ merely means "male Elf" without regard to age. The feminine equivalent, _elleth_, is actually translated by Tolkien as "Elf-maid", but people tend to read that as meaning "female Elf" without regard to age or marital status. Tolkien did not give us Quenya equivlents for these words. We do have _nér_ "adult male [of any sentient species]" and the feminine equivalent, _nís_ in Quenya. Míriel uses the plural forms _neri_ and _nissi_ in the chapter where Ingwë visits her and Martandur to apologize after Glorfindel is attacked just outside their home. Their Sindarin equivalents are _anu_ and _inu_, respectively.

Author Reply: You're right that it should be nineteen, rather than eighteen. Thanks for pointing out the error. I was never good at maths, which is why I teach English rather than Physica. *grin*

MJReviewed Chapter: 125 on 9/26/2007
Catching up after last week's sojourn in the hospital (new chapters was something pleasant to come home to, by the bye :): I was happy to see Glorfindel's "commission" finally show up exactly where I expected it to be (now, who else would he have thought Vaire was going to give a brooch with a heart-shaped stone? Silly boy). But now you've got me wondering about the identity of the particular Vanya that appears to be the obvious choice to be released from Mandos. Maybe my brain's not up to speed just yet -- but I certainly don't object to the suspense, whatever the reason. Good job, once again.

Author Reply: Thanks, MJ. Hope you're feeling better now. Glorfindel might have had his suspicions that the brooch was just "made work" to keep him occupied while "incarcerated" and didn't really think it had any real significance until he actually saw it being worn. Oh well... we're all so good at deluding ourselves...

Anyway the identity of the Vanya won't be revealed in this story, but the question of his/her identity will be answered in another story that's cooking on the back burner even as we speak. It'll be a while though before I get to it, so you'll have to be patient.

Nieriel RainaReviewed Chapter: 125 on 9/25/2007
Ok, well, I'm reviewing sporadically since the painter's are here today, flooring people later in the week and everything isn't ready yet! ARGH! But I do so enjoy these breaks from Real Life that you send!

Well... My mind took an interesting turn with this chapter. I've been reading the story to my daughter every night (She LOVES Glorfindel and Finrod! *grin*) and we just passed the part where Glorfindel had an encounter with Irmo and Námo about Amarië... and in which the Valar mention Glorfindel did not give an oath to Arafinwe for a reason.... Back to this chapter, you really have me thinking! Don't know if that is the direction you are headed, but I can see Glorfindel giving his oath to Finrod, though how that would play out with him returning to ME, I'm not sure. I think the fact that you give my brain such a workout on top of being so entertained is the reason I love this story so much! *smile*

Eonwe keeps growing on me. I've always liked him, but he is multifaceted and I like seeing him in this role during the tournament. The outcome to the match between Finrod and Haldir wasn't surprising, but I'm glad Finrod had to work for it. Now, if only Glory would fight. *wink* Why do I get a feeling we won't see that until he faces off with Finrod? Hm?

Back to last chapter, I really liked how Ingwe handled the rumors, and am sorry to see the Onceborn have new amunition with Haldir's experiencing the blood lust. Poor elf. BTW...is this the Haldir we know from LOTR? I'm just wondering if Glory is the only one to return, since it says somewhere in HoME that when reborn they could return to ME if that was their wish, right?

I really enjoyed these last couple chapters and am waiting anxiously for the next installment of TWOTV. Thank you for sharing and making my days brighter!

NiRi

Author Reply: I'm glad you enjoyed thses last two chapters and that you are sharing the story with your daughter. I'm flattered.

I never intended to write Eönwë into this story, or rather, I never thought about him either way, but when Glorfindel went to the Exellohar to renew his oath to Turgon and Eönwë appeared, I knew it would not be a one-shot deal with this particular Maia. I'm happy to know that he's becoming one of your favorite characters.

This particular Haldir died in Gondolin along with Glorfindel, and, unlike the Haldir from LOTR, he is a Noldo Exile. His original name was Halatiro but he prefers to use the Sindarin equivalent of his Quenya name, just as Glorfindel and Gilvagor do. His father, Pelendur, is one of Arafinwë's advisors.

A new chapter of Wars fo the Valar will be posted before the end of the week. Thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule to review. I really appreciate it.

NarielReviewed Chapter: 125 on 9/24/2007
I really enjoyed this one. It may now be at the top of a list of favorite chapters in your story! *you see what happens when you write too good of a story* I like archery so I was quite glad that there was an archery part of the tournament, but I have to agree that the combat fighting is more exciting.

I am not kidding here but I was about to scream if you didn't include the conclusion to Finrod and Haldir's match! Fortunately you did and that means I still have my voice intact.

I don't know enough still on how Ingwe rules so I cannot say who might be better at being High King: Finrod vs. Ingwe! Now that's hard in a way to decide. Thanks for the thought. I never thought how the elves of Aman thought about how the Exiles ruled and their experiences.

What does Olwe mean by getting Namo to release the *right* Vanya? I just don't know.

Sooo...Fiondil, what's happening next?

Namarie!

Author Reply: Now, I would never leave my readers hanging as to the outcome of any of the more important matches. No worries there! *grin*

I am not an archer, though I took (and enjoyed) it in college, but what's a tournament without archery? And while it may not be as exciting as the fighting, there may be a surprise or two in the archery, you never know.

I may explore the nature of rule among the Elves in another story. We'll have to see what the Muse has in mind. *grin*

Glad this is one of your favorite chapters. I have several myself.

As for what Olwë's words mean... that, as they say, is another story (literally).

and youll just have to wait to see what happens next. *LOL*

KittyReviewed Chapter: 125 on 9/24/2007
Posting another chapter was the perfect solution to the technical problem :-) Thank you so very much! Even more so as I am leaving for a week without internet access on Sunday morning and was resigned to the fact that I wouldn’t get to know the outcome of the fight between Haldir and Finrod until after my holiday. So I’ll maybe *not* dying from curiosity during my absence ;-)

The rumors that had run through the city the day before died down only to be replaced by new rumors concerning the Reborn and their proclivity towards violence Hmmm ... that was only to be expected. But still – the ones who attacked Glorfindel were *no* Reborn and no Tol Eressëans, if memory serves. Some people seem to have to be reminded of this – the Amaneldi are no angels, either!

I am glad Finrod convinced Haldir to fight the afternoon round in spite of what happened. And I was even more glad he was such a challenge to Finrod – the Prince certainly got his exercise! Somehow it made me happy for Haldir, even if he lost in the end.
Though I think you made a mistake near the end – you wrote that Aldarion, Aldundil and Ingwion won, but it is obvious that Aldarion can’t have been fighting. I think it should be Ardamirë, who was at the beginning of this part mentioned fighting Hallas. (Quite confusing, such a tournament, isn’t it? Had to draw a plan for myself to keep track of the fighters, or I'd be completely lost!)

Nice to see a bit of Elindis in this chapter; she’s a worthy High Queen. And of course I completely agree with her opinion about Finrod :-)

Author Reply: Hi Kitty. Thanks for pointing out the error. I have a chart of the tournament myself, but I must've been looking at the wrong section, plus it's hard to keep track with all these names that look and/or sound alike.*gri8n*

Anyway, as Finrod pointed out, Haldir *had* to fight that afternoon, whether it was against Finrod or someone else. It would be the only way for him to get past what had happened earlier and recover his self-esteem. Winning or losing was not the point, as far as Finrod was concerned. He was concerned about Haldir's state of mind and knew that going back into the list was the only thing for it. That is why the messages from Manwë and Námo.

Elindis likes to stay in the background, but every once in a while, she comes forward and says things or does things to remind you that she *is* High Queen of all the Elves of Aman. Even Ingwë has to be reminded of that once or twice a yéni. *grin*

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